FTC Enforcement Report

The FTC is a law enforcement agency that takes court and administrative actions to enhance competition and protect consumers. Without limitation, its mission is to protect consumers from fraud, ensure truth in advertising, challenge deceptive or unfair privacy and security practices, and promote competition. The FTC also focuses on its order enforcement program. The enforcement program includes civil contempt actions.

2017

In 2017, the FTC focused upon protecting consumer privacy, promoting economic liberty, providing guidance to small businesses and reducing excessive regulations. The agency also continued its efforts to challenge anticompetitive business conduct.

Notable consumer protection enforcement matters from 2017 include:

In coordination with eleven states and the District of Columbia, the agency launched a coordinated federal-state law enforcement initiative targeting deceptive student loan debt relief scams;

A federal court order directing Dish Network to pay $280 million in civil penalties and to cease alleged violations of the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule and other federal and state laws;

Settlement with marketer of products that allegedly made unproven claims about lessening the effects of opiate withdrawal and overcoming opioid dependency without supporting competent and reliable scientific evidence;

Charges against robocallers that allegedly placed millions of illegal calls to consumers listed on the DNC Registry;

Settlement with a computer manufacturer following charges that it harmed consumers with preinstalled software on its laptops that compromised online security;

Multi-million dollar settlement with one of the world’s largest manufacturers and sellers of internet-connected “smart” televisions, over charges that the software on its TVs collected viewing data on millions of consumer TVs without consumers’ knowledge or consent;

Cases enforcing the new European Union-United States (EU-U.S.) Privacy Shield framework involving misrepresentations about completion of the certification process;

Settlement with online tax preparation service involving allegations that it violated the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act’s Safeguards and Privacy Rules when malicious hackers were able to gain full access to thousands of accounts and use the information to obtain taxpayers’ refunds by filing fraudulent tax returns;

First ever case against social media influencers charged with deceptive endorsements and the failure to disclose material connections;

The issuance of educational letters to influencers and brands to remind them of the FTC’s updated Endorsement Guides;

Settlement of charges that defendants coerced consumers into paying bogus phantom debts by posing as lawyers, threatening people with prison time or claiming police would come to their house to arrest them; and

In 2017, the FTC also cooperated on enforcement matters with foreign agencies and organizations in numerous matters, including by using the agency’s powers under the U.S. SAFE WEB Act. The FTC also entered into a memorandum of understanding to facilitate information sharing and enforcement cooperation with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police on cross-border fraud.

2016

In 2016, the FTC focused upon protecting the interests of consumers in areas that have the greatest impact, including, fraud, deceptive advertising, unfair marketing, privacy and data security and technology. The agency also challenged mergers that that it believed would have harmed the competitive process and consumers.

In the Commission’s largest false advertising settlement in its history, Volkswagen Group of America agreed to spend up to $10B to settle FTC charges that its “clean diesel” claims deceived consumers. The FTC also settled its lawsuit against DeVry University for allegedly deceiving students about the likelihood that they would find jobs after graduation in their field of study.

Litigated judgment against payday lender charged with violating the FTC Act, the Truth in Lending Act and the Electronic Funds Transfer Act;

An appellate ruling upholding a lower court decision requiring the operator of an affiliate marketing group to pay millions in conjunction with the alleged deceptive marketing of weight-loss supplements

Settlement with developer and marketer of “brain training” program with agreement to cease making false and unsubstantiated claims that the programs are clinically proven to permanently improve serious health conditions and that the training improves earnings and job performance;

Multi-million dollar settlement with marketers of indoor tanning systems charged with making false and unsubstantiated claims about the safety of their tanning systems;

Settlement with sellers of a liquid supplement in a matter involving false and unsubstantiated advertising allegations;

Settlement with marketers of a mobile app designed to measure blood pressure involving charges of unsubstantiated health claims;

The issuance of warning letters to online marketers designed to ensure that health-related claims are supported by competent and reliable scientific evidence;

Enforcement action against defendants that allegedly operated an international tech support scam that, according to the Commission, made consumers believe that malware or hackers had compromised their computers, and that the defendants were associated with or certified by Microsoft and Apple to make repairs;

Settlement with digital advertising company involving charges that it deceptively tracked consumers online and through their mobile devices;

Settlement with mobile advertising network involving charges that it tracked hundreds of millions of consumers’ locations without permission in order to serve geo-targeted advertising, in violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA);

Unfair security practices settlement with the operators of the dating site Ashley Madison involving charges that the company deceived consumers and failed to protect 36 million users’ account and profile information in relation to a massive network breach;

Settlement with lead generators for alleged violations of the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule by making robocalls to consumers on the national DNC registry;

The initiation of an enforcement action, in coordination with the Department of Justice, to halt a telemarketing operation that allegedly made illegal robocalls promising consumers energy savings, in an effort to generate leads to sell to solar panel installation companies;

Settlements involving allegations of the failed to clearly and conspicuously disclose paid promotions and material connections with influencers;

First ever enforcement action against an education lead generator, including allegations of a deceptive scheme to generate and “steer” sales leads;

Charges against telemarketers that allegedly tricked seniors and veterans into paying for worthless money-making opportunities and a bogus grants program;

Enforcement action against an operation that allegedly threatened and intimidated consumers to collect phantom payday loan “debts” and illegally provided portfolios of fake debt to other debt collectors

Charges against operators of imposter scams that allegedly pretended to be associated with federal government agencies.Also noteworthy in 2016 was a federal court judge lifting the partial suspension of a judgment in a text SPAM case due to the discovery of evidence that the defendant concealed assets from the FTC.

In 2016, Dallas area auto dealers agreed to pay a civil penalty to settle charges that they violated an administrative order barring them from deceptively advertising the cost of buying or leasing a car. Another civil contempt settlement involved charges against a billing aggregator’s alleged violation of a court order that settled earlier FTC charges of phone bill cramming.

Also noteworthy in 2016 was a federal court judge lifting the partial suspension of a judgment in a text SPAM case due to the discovery of evidence that the defendant concealed assets from the FTC.

2015

In 2015, the FTC focused upon emerging technologies and their impact on consumers. It also devoted resources to stopping anticompetitive consolidation.

Settlement with company that allegedly misstated supplements’ ability to treat children’s speech and behavioral disorders;

Ruling from the D.C. Circuit affirming decision regarding deceptive and unsubstantiated claims pertaining to the ability of a popular beverage’s ability to treat, prevent or reduce the risk of heart disease and prostate cancer;

Charges against two app developers for allegedly making deceptive and unsupported claims that their mobile apps could detect symptoms of melanoma;

Numerous cases against marketers touting the slimming effects of various products, including an $11.9 million dollar judgment against an affiliate marketing network for allegedly using fake news sites to convince consumers that acai berry and colon cleansing weight loss products were proven effective;

Several actions alleging fraud on new technology platforms, including

defendants behind a mobile gaming app that allegedly misrepresented the existed of malware;

Settlement with an entertainment network involving allegations that it deceived consumers with endorsement videos posted by paid influencers;

Charges against the marketers of a line of weight-loss supplements that allegedly made baseless claims and threatened to enforce “gag clause” provisions against consumers to stop them from posting negative reviews and testimonials online;

Settlement with a retail tracking firm involving allegations that it misled consumers about tracking opt-out choices;

Settlements with app developers involving allegations that they violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act by permitting third-party advertisers to collect personal information from children without obtaining parental consent;

Settlement with Wyndham Hotels and Resorts involving allegations that the company unfairly exposed the payment card information of hundreds of thousands of consumers to hackers in three separate data breaches;

Settlement with defendants that pitched cruise line vacations involving allegations of llegally selling cruise vacations using political survey robocalls;

Enforcement action against DIRECTV for allegedly advertising the cost of its satellite television service in a deceptive manner;

Settlement with direct marketer of product on television involving allegations that consumers were charged without their consent for additional products and undisclosed processing and handling fees;

Settlement with for-profit educational institution involving allegations that it mislead students about career training credit transfers;

In 2015, the FTC also initiated enforcement actions against alleged sham charities, abusive debt collection practices and a data broker that purportedly sold payday loan applicants’ financial information to a scam operation that took millions of dollars from consumers by debiting their bank accounts and charging their credit cards without their consent.

The FTC was also active in 2015 as it pertains to order enforcement. For example, in one of the largest monetary awards obtained by the agency in a contempt action, LifeLock agreed to pay $100 million to settle charges that it violated the terms of a 2010 federal court order that required the company to secure consumers’ personal information and prohibited deceptive advertising.